Rock Identifier

Rock & Mineral Encyclopedia

Search and identify 1,000+ rocks, minerals, crystals, and gemstones — with properties, formation, colors, hardness, and how to tell them apart.

Gary Green Jasper

An Oregon jasper, also called larsonite, of silicified fossil wood showing olive-green fields laced with black dendritic patterns.

mineral
Kyanite Schist

Kyanite Schist

A mica schist containing bladed blue kyanite crystals, a marker of medium- to high-grade metamorphism of aluminous rocks.

metamorphic
Fossiliferous Limestone

Fossiliferous Limestone

Calcium-carbonate sedimentary rock packed with visible fossils, recording ancient marine life within an easily scratched, fizzing matrix.

sedimentary
Hawk's Eye

Hawk's Eye

The blue-grey relative of tiger's eye, a chatoyant quartz showing a shifting band of light like a bird of prey's eye.

gemstone
Tourmaline Schist

Tourmaline Schist

A foliated schist threaded with black tourmaline (schorl) needles, marking boron-rich metamorphic or metasomatic conditions.

metamorphic

Blue Line Jasper

A pale jasper crossed by distinctive blue-gray veins or lines, valued by lapidaries for its calm color contrast.

gemstone
Graphic Feldspar

Graphic Feldspar

A pegmatite rock of feldspar intergrown with wedge-shaped quartz that resembles ancient runic or Hebrew writing.

igneous

Exotica Jasper

Also called Sci-Fi Jasper, a Mexican jasper-rhyolite with swirling abstract patterns in cream, tan, gray, pink, and green.

gemstone
Pietersite

Pietersite

A brecciated, chatoyant quartz with swirling blue, gold, and brown fibers that shimmer like a stormy sky.

gemstone
Breccia

Breccia

A coarse rock of angular, sharp-edged fragments cemented in a matrix, marking nearby rockfall, faulting, or impact.

sedimentary

Coyamito Agate

A prized banded agate from Rancho Coyamito in Chihuahua, Mexico, known for eyes, pom-poms and vivid fortification.

gemstone
Brazilian Agate

Brazilian Agate

Abundant banded chalcedony from southern Brazil, the world's main source of agate slices and dyed agate products.

gemstone
Yellow Agate

Yellow Agate

A yellow to golden banded chalcedony colored by iron, ranging from natural honey tones to dyed commercial stones.

gemstone
Fairburn Agate

Fairburn Agate

The state gemstone of South Dakota, a rare fortification agate known for tight, holly-leaf concentric banding.

gemstone
Granite

Granite

A coarse-grained, speckled intrusive rock built from quartz, feldspar, and mica, forming the bedrock of the continents.

igneous
Dryhead Agate

Dryhead Agate

A banded fortification agate from the remote Dryhead area of south-central Montana, prized for warm concentric rings.

gemstone
Red Agate

Red Agate

A red-toned banded chalcedony colored by iron oxides, ranging from natural carnelian-like reds to heat-treated stones.

gemstone
Condor Agate

Condor Agate

A vividly banded fortification agate from Argentina prized for its bold red, gold and white concentric patterns.

gemstone
Eye Agate

Eye Agate

A chalcedony agate marked by round, concentric ring patterns that resemble eyes when cut and polished.

gemstone
Fortification Agate

Fortification Agate

The classic agate pattern of angular concentric bands resembling the walls of a fort, found in agates worldwide.

gemstone
Porcelanite

Porcelanite

A hard, fine-grained siliceous rock with a dull porcelain-like texture, intermediate between soft diatomite and dense chert.

sedimentary
Ocean Jasper

Ocean Jasper

A multicolored orbicular chalcedony from Madagascar famous for its circular eye-like orbs in greens, pinks, whites, and yellows.

sedimentary
Mookaite

Mookaite

A vivid Australian jasper-like silica stone in earthy reds, yellows, and purples, formed from silicified radiolarian sediment.

mineral
Madagascar Jasper

Madagascar Jasper

A broad family of vividly patterned jaspers from Madagascar, including orbicular and scenic varieties prized for colorful, eye-catching designs.

gemstone